Compendium Volume THIRTEEN - Series 1 to 3 CRAZY PEOPLE – SERIES 1 a new form of ‘goon’ humour which they had developed since the war, making each other laugh at the family-run pub of Grafton’s on Strutton Grounds in APRIL 1949-DECEMBER 1951 Westminster. The landlord-cum-theatrical agent Jimmy Grafton had co-written the script under the pen-name ‘James Douglas’ along with his lodger, eccentric THE PROGRAMME musician Terence ‘Spike’ Milligan. Impersonator Peter Sellers headed the cast along with rising comics Harry Secombe, Michael Bentine and Robert Moreton, plus Doris Nichol (a colleague of Jacques Brown’s from Danger – ‘What exactly is a goon? Well, this is the answer Michael Bentine, Spike Men at Work!) and Bob Bain. Peter was Lord Peter, the twenty-second Earl Milligan, Peter Sellers and I cooked up whenever people asked us to explain of Sellers, with Robert as Mr Moreton the butler, Doris as Peter’s aunt Lady ourselves,’ wrote Harry Secombe in his newspaper column for the Glaswegian Lavinia, Harry and Michael as the crackpot wastrels Harry Secombe and the publication The Bulletin on Monday 24 June 1957. He then elaborated: ‘A goon Great Mike Bentine, and Bob as planning representative T Mucksworld Quince. is some one with a one-cell brain. Anything not basically simple puzzles a goon. The script also featured flashbacks to Peter’s ancestors, and opportunities for He thinks in the fourth dimension and his language is one step past babytalk. Peter to impersonate stars of the day such as Robb Wilton and Kenneth Horne. Goonery is bringing any situation to its illogical conclusion.’ Music was composed by established BBC pianist Jack Jordan, a veteran of Have a Go! and various musical shows, the melodies were conducted by From 3.30pm to 4.15pm on Wednesday 26 April 1949, a trial recording of a Stanley Black, and Dennis Castle acted as the announcer. new BBC radio comedy series called Tatters Castle took place in the silent, audience-free space of the Criterion Theatre in London. The lack of audience The trial recording was studied by BBC Light Entertainment (Sound)… was the idea of the Paris-born producer Jacques Brown, a compere and actor on and rejected. But it was the first recording undertaken by the Corporation to BBC radio before the war who had found success in the radio comedy Danger combine the talents of four comparatively new performers whose strange new – Men at Work! and who had then started to produce shows such as Taxi!, Hi ‘goon’ humour would soon herald a new generation in British comedy. Gang!, Can You Beat It? and Oliver’s Twists. The format of the show was a strange mix of humour concerning the crumbling estate of an eccentric English Born in 1918, Spike Milligan had been a jazz musician before being called earl, his butler and the rest of his staff who resided near Lower Sagging. The up for World War II, where he was hospitalised with shell shock after being cast comprised some of radio’s newest talent who had been experimenting with wounded in action at the Battle of Monte Cassino in 1944. After demob, he had returned to England and worked with the comedy music group The Bill In September 1947, Harry was appearing at the Hackney Empire and when Hall Trio from 1947; this included editions of BBC TV’s Variety produced by Spike visited him there he was introduced to another comedy act, impersonator Michael Mills in July 1947. Spike had also met up with – and lodged with – a Peter Sellers. Peter had been born into a theatrical family and had accompanied fellow soldier whom he had encountered during the war, Welsh singer and his parents on the variety circuit, working in the theatre and playing drums in comic Harry Secombe. Hailing from Swansea and three years younger than bands during the war. He entertained the troops in the Entertainments National Spike, Harry had been a pay clerk before the war and had encountered Spike Service Association (ENSA) and joined the RAF in 1943, serving in the Far during their time in North Africa. The pair found that they shared the same East. After demob, he continued to work as a drummer and impressionist. Peter strange sense of fun, and after demob, Harry started to perform on stage as a (who shared the same birthday as Harry but was four years younger) was also comic at the infamous Windmill Theatre from October 1946. He made his first quickly added to the Grafton’s mob where the former servicemen would get television broadcast on Little Show in November 1946, soon followed by BBC together in the upper room to engage in crazy banter, strange gags, and mess radio spots on Variety Bandbox and The Carroll Levis Show in 1947. And while around with tunes around the piano. at the Windmill, Harry encountered another comic with a different view of the post-war world: Michael Bentine. A major leap forward for this new style of humour came with a trial recording for a show entitled Listen My Children at the Camden Theatre on Wednesday Born in 1922, Eton-educated, half-Peruvian Michael had overcome a stammer 24 March 1948. The cast included Harry and the producer was Pat Dixon, to develop an interest in theatricals when war broke out and he joined the originally a writer on the pre-war show Give Me Air who had gone on to RAF, ultimately working for British Intelligence. His improvisational nature produce entertainment shows including Hoop-La! and Ignorance is Bliss. By with props led him to establish a stage act after demob, winning a place on April, the series had been confirmed, with eight shows to record from Saturday the bill at the Windmill as part of the double act Sherwood and Forrest. Also 8 May for broadcast on the Home Service from Tuesday 1 June.The ambitious a writer, Michael offered Harry some material for his appearances on Variety young Peter had approached the BBC for television auditions in January 1948 Bandbox and then introduced Harry to another writer, Major Jimmy Grafton with an act consisting of his wide range of characters from favourite radio (rtd) at Grafton’s; Jimmy soon became Harry’s agent. Seeing a fellow comedy personalities of the day to regional caricatures of his own. He made his BBC eccentric, Harry quickly introduced Spike to Michael… and Michael was soon TV debut in March 1948 on New To You and was soon acclaimed for his to experience success as part of the London Hippodrome revue Starlight Roof impersonations at the Windmill. A cheeky phone call to BBC producer Roy by late 1947. Speer – in which he impersonated Kenneth Horne, the star of Much-Binding- in-the-Marsh – got Peter work on Show Time in June 1948 which was followed Sellers were to join Harry Secombe in the line-up for the new show; Michael by spots on shows like Variety Bandbox, Starlight Hour and Tempo for Today had approached BBC radio and television in 1947 and had made television – a demanding schedule which he fitted in around touring in variety. Having appearances on Variety Express in May 1947 and more recently in Rooftop spent autumn 1947 touring Europe, Spike and the Bill Hall Trio appeared on Rendezvous. Also in the cast were Robert Moreton and comedy actress Margaret television in Rooftop Rendezvous (produced by Richard Afton) in August 1948. Lindsay. After a spell with the Ann Lenner Trio, Spike met up again with the Grafton’s mob and started to write a few gags for one of Jimmy’s clients, comedian Derek On New Year’s Day 1949, Harry and Michael appeared together on BBC TV’s Roy who was appearing on Variety Bandbox. However, Spike felt that Derek Rooftop Rendezvous. Then Third Division was scheduled to air from Wednesday was not a funny man and instead focussed more on messing around with his 26 January. It met with mixed success, while at Grafton’s – where Spike was own routines with the mob at Grafton’s, soon known as ‘Them ruddy Goons!’. now living and writing in the attic – the group started to mess around with a wire recorder, assembling surreal bits of sketches, mad characters and strange The word ‘Goon’ started to enter more public circulation when a piece about limericks or snatches of verse. Peter seemed to be particularly destined for Michael entitled What is a Goon? appeared in the Picture Post dated Friday 5 success at this time, and so Spike and Jimmy developed a pilot script for a series November 1948. The word ‘Goon’ came from numerous sources, notably the around him which Peter then pitched to Pat Dixon to test the BBC’s interest. character Alice the Goon, a strange creature which first appeared in theThimble Entitled Sellers’ Castle, this would see Peter as Lord Sellers – and his ancestors Theatre comic strip in December 1933. Tall, bald, large-nosed and heavy-armed, – and feature others from Grafton’s. Alfred Marks, another Windmill success Alice later was revealed to be part of a tribe living on Goon Island and her who had appeared in Stars in Your Eyes on TV and had worked with Peter on speech took the form of strange squiggles. Goon Island was then the setting for Starlight Hour for producer Roy Speer, was to play an impresario with Harry the animated 1938 short Goonland which chronicled the exploits of Popeye. The as his wandering minstrel singing protégé. Michael was to be a mad inventor. word had then been used during the war by prisoners of war as a slang term for Spike enjoyed playing an idiot servant character, using a voice similar to their German stalag guards.